Anyone with Auto Train Experience

[nolenurse2000]

My husband and I are considering taking the boys on the auto train this summer for one leg of our vacation.
We (Me, DH, DS4, DS1.8) live in DE. It would be a 2 hour drive to Lorton, VA...load up and leave at 4pm (drive car right onto train). Dinner included. We would get a family bedroom for overnight. Breakfast in am. arrive at Sanford, FL in the AM...then drive to St. Pete and stay for the week.
We have about 10 days to travel.
flight for 3 (baby in arms until he turns 2) would be about $700
rental car price...crazy! I think with everything we need to bring, we'll def need a minivan (or suv).

auto train $1000 one way
we would have our car
would have to drive the 18 hrs home (over 4th of July weekend...unless we did it on the way back home instead!).

Advice?
anyone do this in the past?

The 4 yr old would LOVE it...the 21 mo old would too...but he;s still in a crib and has never slept with us. I assume I would have to sleep with him in one of the beds.

Anyone have any codes good for june/july travel on the auto train?

TY!!

 

[tinker-belle]

If you're willing to forgo the bedroom and travel coach you can travel both ways for cheaper than your one way price you have quoted.

We've taken the auto train five times, most recently this past January. It was me, DH, DS13, DS8 & DS18 months and it was 810.00 total for roundtrip (minivans are a bit more $, we had a camry).

We are AAA members and that saves 10%.

Often in the summer there is a code for kids to ride cheaply or free. But your son who isn't 2 is free too. (children under age 2 are free on the auto train).

 

[nolenurse2000]

How did your 18 mo old do? did he just sleep in your arms (for 10+ hrs?!)?

 

[tinker-belle]

How did your 18 mo old do? did he just sleep in your arms (for 10+ hrs?!)?

He did great. In my experience the smaller the kid, the easier it is to sleep! It's the adults that have a harder time. We asked for lower level seats, which only seat about 14 people in total, so we didn't have to worry about him 'making a run for it' and dealing with the staircase, lower level is enclosed.

On the way there there were 4 other people in the car with us. I brought my own pillow & his own blanket & he was 'comfy cozy' the whole night long.
The way back, we had the whole lower level to ourselves, so we all got to spread out more.
The coach seats recline pretty far down. There is a lot of leg room too. It's not like coach on planes. Again it is usually the adults who have more of an issue sleeping through the night, since kids are so much more compact

 

[Suz D]

Might I suggest you do your trip in reverse? Drive down to Florida and take the train home? That's what we did in January. We were excited for the trip so it was an easy and fun drive going down. At the end of the week we were tired from going full blast at Disney and it was nice not to have to dread that long drive home. Plus it sort of felt like we were extending our vacation a bit.

When we went in January we didn't have a clue what to expect. We didn't get the bedroom because it was too expensive when we booked (our total fare was $470.00 one way for 4 people and our van. We got a GREAT deal). The bedroom would have cost us an extra $650.00. One thing that we didn't know is that your meals are included even if you don't get a sleeper. You may have already known that but it was a fun treat for us to find that out.

After traveling that way, we would definately not do it again without getting a sleeper car. It was way too uncomfortable and hard to sleep. My DH got less than 2 hours sleep that night and not much more for me. Several people were snoring REALLY loud which also made it hard to sleep. Definately bring your own pillows and blankets. We brought blankets but were stuck with those itty bitty pillows that were incredibly uncomfortable.

We had a 3.5 hour drive home that morning. The train got in 2 hours early which was a big bonus.

One interesting thing...it took us awhile to get our "land legs" back. It takes us just a few hours to get accustomed to being back on land when we cruise, but it took a good day + after the train.

Have fun!

 

[Grandmax3]

There is a thread devoted to experiences on the Auto Train on the Dis. I don't known how to connect it or I would give you alink. We have taken the Auto Train several times and my grandsons had a great time .the youngest was 3-5 and 7 years old when we went. We had the Family bedroom and it was great ,they have straps that connect the bottom of the bed to the ceiling to keep the child safe from falling out. There are 2 long bed and 2 short beds. One piece of info to remember is that Cars have to be checked in by 2PM and Suvs have to be checked in by1PM. Take pillows and change of clothes in a separate bag as you have no access to your car. It was great to wake up and have breakfast and unload and be headed to WDW by 10:00 am. I would recommend it to anyone. to us it was cheaper and more fun than flying.

 

[PA Princess]

We did the auto train one year and it was a fun experience for our kids. Our youger who was 9 at the time was a huge train buff and he especially loved the trip.

We did coach seats (summer promo that kids traveled free - with 4 kids this was a big savings for us). This worked fine for us mostly.

Like you I was concerned about the youngest sleeping (she was 20 months when we traveled). We opted to bring her car seat. We did not bring it for safety, but it was a place I knew she would sleep (especially with the sway of the train). My dh was able to stablize the seat by wedging it with the section of the seat that comes up in the front (hard to describe). I slept next to her

My favorite memory from that trip...2am 20 month old dd wakes up. Uh oh. I knew if I took her out of the seat there was no way she was going back in, so I pretended to be asleep.

Something to be aware of is that you hear the train whistle... a lot because you travel with it We must have been going through a residential area because we hit a spell of repeated whistling. DD started to mimic it. Not loud or even much above a whisper, but very clear what she was doing.

I peeked around to see if others were stirring or disturbed (mostly our family in the car). Seeing no movement I let her go. For about 15 minutes she woooed herself to sleep LOL It really was precious.

Things we loved about the auto train - meals, entertainment, ability to move around, the beauty of some of the coastal areas we passed.

Things we did not love - bathrooms were pretty nasty in coach, people walked through our car to other areas of the train (freaked me out at night - go for bottom where there is no walk thru), and the movement of that train during the night was ROUGH! Really rough.

Southwest keeps rates low enough when we travel that flying is never more than the train for our family, so we stick with flying. But I am glad we tried the auto train at least once.

One other thought, I had read the station in FL was being basically rebuilt and temporary areas were in a tent. I would not want to depart from FL in July if that was still the case. You will spend several hours at the depart station (because of the times they require you to check in). The Lorton station is very nice and even has a playground. We had no trouble entertaining our brood for a few hours (they were 10, 9, 6, and not quite 2).

 

[CherylA]

I second or third or whatever the coach idea. We have twice done exactly what you are suggesting, driving one way and taking the train the other way and getting a family room. We liked it it was nice. But this past time we did coach which was much less money and we were able to do it round trip because of the lower cost. We LOVED it. I liked coach better. We met and talked with people and I didn't feel like I was locked in a box with my family (thats how I felt in the family room) Bring some food/snacks for your little one as if you do not pay for a seat, you do not get a meal for the little one. Our train was completely full, over 500 passengers when we did it just this past February so there were no extra seats to spread out on yet we still did just fine. I even slept pretty well. I am really looking forward to doing it again.

 

[labdogs42]

Here is the Autotrain thread: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=402667

We want to try the train for our next trip, too. I just have to figure out when it will be!

 

[gillenkl]

When my twins were about 14 months we did the auto train. We had a bedroom and it was nice because the kids could crawl walk around without bothering people. DH slept in the upper bed and the kids and I slept on the bottom. They were zonked out from the movement. It was $$$ but I'm glad we did have a bedroom. If you can swing it - I'd go that way.

 

[gillenkl]

I don't know where in DE you live - but we live in Wilmington, DE and we leave our house by 9AM to make the autotrain on time. Loading the cars on takes awhile and you'll be waiting in the station before you board the train. Also when you get off in Sanford it will take awhile for your car to be unloaded. Just be prepared for alot of waiting.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Note that the train actually departs around 4:00 (both ways). They start accepting vehicles for loading a little before Noon, and if you are not there by 3:00 you cannot board. Here is http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?c=Page&pagename=am/Layout&cid=1241337915810 their detailed information.

 

[mykidslovesdisney]

The Sanford station is in the process of being rebuilt. We were there last Aug. They had installed a huge tent w/ walls,windows. They had seating set up. It was air conditioned. I didn;t find it uncomfortable while waiting. It is my understanding that is what they are still using.

we are returning for our 6th trip this Aug. All OP gave great advice on the AT

When we traveled 2 yrs ago w/ ds than 1.2yrs. We brought his pillow and blanket w/ us. DH was able to take the footrest of the chair and flip it up so it created a little wall. We laid DS on his pillow and he slept great. It kept us from worrying about him falling off.

Last yr trip we did coach on the way down -- all the kids and us slept great. Well I did ok-- hard to sleep when you are rocking soo much. We had deluxe bedrooms. On the return we were coach. DS2.2 yr slept w/ me. He slept well but was really wiggly. I was worried about him falling off so I didn't sleep too hot.

Hopefully this year he sleeps better on the trip.

 

[TreslovesWDW]

We also live in Delaware. We have taken the train the past 2 years and are taking it again this year. We had coach one time one way to try and save money. I did not like it at all. We really had the whole front of the car to ourselves and there was another family in the rear of the car. We did spread out and use both seats to sleep but very uncomfortabe for adults in my opinion. The biggest problem is people walking through the doors all through out the night it does make alot of noise and someone bumped into my foot and scared the heck out of me while I was asleep. I thought the bedrooms were alot better. We only went to our room when we were ready for bed. The rest of the time we walked around, had dinner, watched the movie,played cards in the sitting area. It really is a fun experience.

 

[heartsy77]

We live in Upstate NY and drive 5 hours to catch the auto train. We have only taken it once and are taking it again in August.

After last time I said never again! But I think it was the fact my MIL was along that made it less then pleasant!

This time we could not fly with 6 people and all the baggage fees etc. so it was drive all the way or take the train. We have a Pilot now so we wont be waiting till last for our car which drove me nuts.

Op there is usually a kids ride free or reduced promotion for the summer auto train trips; it should be out in the next couple months!

 

[mykidslovesdisney]

The AT has new car carriers. They can mix the type of cars being loaded. We have a Chevy Venture/Honda Odyssey. In 07 and 08 we were unloaded in FL #3 and #5. What a great feeling that was. Last year I swear we were the last carrier unloaded. It was a sold out train and it felt like forever waiting for our vehicle. So no more waiting till the end for oversized vehicles.


heartsy77 -- when are u traveling?? We are on the Aug 10 and 19 train.

 

[nolenurse2000]

Thank you all for the great posts.
Both DH and I work in Wilmington (at least for a few more months...AZ just cut 550...including DH)...we actually have friends just a couple exits from Lorton, so we could always visit them the night before and not have a drive plus wait with the boys.
Thanks for the suggestion on taking the train home is we choose just one way. Makes sense, actually thought about that today. Might be w travel on July 4th...could be interesting...fireworks in multiple area =)

Thanks for the AutoTrain link. more evening reading =)

Will be on the look out for some summertime coupons!

 

[My2BabiesLexis&Dill]

I have to agree with what everyone else is saying. We are takin our 3rd trip down on the AT this September. The kids look forward to it. The 2 things that I didn't see mentioned was...

1.Book early to get a cheaper rate
2. We bring one of those collasable coolers with us with drinks b/c 1.50 for a can of soda is crazy!! My sister spent 9.00 for 6 drinks on the ride down(that was our first time riding, we didn't know better) But on the way back we brought our own drinks and saved us a ton of money.

 

[heartsy77]

The AT has new car carriers. They can mix the type of cars being loaded. We have a Chevy Venture/Honda Odyssey. In 07 and 08 we were unloaded in FL #3 and #5. What a great feeling that was. Last year I swear we were the last carrier unloaded. It was a sold out train and it felt like forever waiting for our vehicle. So no more waiting till the end for oversized vehicles.


heartsy77 -- when are u traveling?? We are on the Aug 10 and 19 train.

We leave VA on the 27 and board again Sept 3!

 

[My2BabiesLexis&Dill]

We leave VA on the 27 and board again Sept 3!

We leave on the 3rd on the AT to head to FL. LOL